As Founder and Lead Steward at Unakti, Susana drives a female-led ecosystem focused on restoring human and planetary health. The mission centers around replicable agroforestry projects for biodiversity restoration, and taking the lead on detoxifying the cosmetics industry.
Working closely with local women farmers and communities, Susana’s team cultivates valuable medicinal and aromatic plants. These botanical gifts form the basis of pure and potent raw materials, are used in cosmetics, health & wellness, and their own regenerative skincare line.
Unakti, under Susana’s leadership prioritizes impactful outcomes, ensuring financial gains align with their core values. They harness business as a catalyst for positive change, integrating regenerative design and social responsibility at the core of their operations.
Praveen Gupta: You quit the financial markets to nurture an alternative form of governance for a new system of doing business?
Susana Gago: Indeed, I left the corporate world in 2000 to reorganize my inner architecture at the age of 32, opening up space for more inspiring and purposeful possibilities in my life ahead. It has been a transformative journey of personal, professional, and spiritual growth that has deeply influenced my worldview. I was drawn to India, captivated by the profound insights I gained from several yoga books, most notably “Autobiography of a Yogi” by Paramahansa Yogananda. This incredible science not only introduced me to new spiritual dimensions but also ignited a passion for exploring deeper, more meaningful ways of living and working.
Since that pivotal shift, I ventured into the realm of sustainability with a slow fashion brand, nurturing it for 17 years. This experience was extremely challenging but fulfilling, focusing on ethical practices and sustainable growth. However, as my journey evolved, so did my vision. Today, I am at the helm of a more ambitious project, Unakti, which aims to create a positive impact on a planetary bioregional scale starting from India.
Unakti is not just a brand; it’s a movement dedicated to ecosystem and biodiversity regeneration. We are committed to empowering women from the grassroots level, providing them with the tools and opportunities to uplift their communities. Furthermore, our initiatives are designed to foster community-based resilience, ensuring that local populations can thrive in harmony with their natural environments.
This new chapter is about taking everything I have learned and applying it to create a regenerative, holistic, and inclusive model of business that respects both the planet and its people.
PG: There are no directors only stewards?
SG: At Unakti, we pioneer a governance model rooted in stewardship, moving away from traditional hierarchical structures, which seem outdated and somewhat immature to me. Recognizing that all team members are capable adults with enormous potential, we empower our team of co-stewards to step up into their own leadership roles. This approach is not only about empowering but also nurturing and sustaining.
“Our model emphasizes accountability and long-term caretaking over short-term gains, ensuring that every decision made is in the best interest of the community and the environment.”
Our model emphasizes accountability and long-term caretaking over short-term gains, ensuring that every decision made is in the best interest of the community and the environment. It’s about creating an environment where leadership involves guidance, empowerment, and oversight. This holistic approach helps ensure that our practices are ethical and collaborative, reflecting our core values of sustainability and inclusivity.
By focusing on stewardship, we cultivate a more participatory and responsible form of governance that aligns with our commitment to regeneration and resilience at every level of our organization. This transformation in leadership is not just a policy but a practice that permeates our entire operation.
PG: How are you leveraging self-help groups (SHGs) to nurture agroforestry in the Himalayan region?
SG: Currently, we are in the early stages of establishing our operations in the Himalayas, with our efforts focused on securing appropriate land. While our on-the-ground activities have not yet begun, our strategy includes empowering local self-help groups to implement sustainable agroforestry practices that are beneficial for both the environment and the communities.
A crucial component of our approach is the educational side of our project, which aims to enhance skill sets and build capacity among local women farmers’ groups. By introducing them to the latest AgriTech innovations and providing training in regenerative farming practices, we are committed to supporting these groups not only with the knowledge but also with the tools necessary for regenerative farming.
Moreover, our project is designed to bring all seven forms of capital to these communities, including financial, natural, social, human, intellectual, cultural, and spiritual capital. This holistic approach ensures that the interventions are robust and sustainable, enabling the women farmers to optimize their efforts, manage their resources more effectively, and ultimately lead their communities towards greater economic resilience and environmental stewardship.
Our partnership with these self-help groups will be instrumental in fostering a model of agriculture that is not only ecologically sound but also economically viable, creating a blueprint for sustainable development in the Himalayan region.
“Only men insecure of themselves feel uncomfortable with the idea of a Matriarch or Feminine leadership (which is genderless).”
PG: You have always been candid about the downside of Patriarchy. What’s your concept of Matriarchy? How does that align with Nature?
SG: Indeed, my reflections on patriarchy have always been forthright, and are based on proof-of-concept, highlighting its many limitations as a system characterized by violence, extraction, devastation, and exploitation. Over the last 7,000 years, patriarchal structures have significantly endangered life on our planet, with clear evidence all around us. If such a system, based on ego and ignorance, were a startup, it would have failed within just a few years. The acquisition of power through brute force is no match for the more effective powers of subtle and comprehensive intellect.
In contrast, my concept of matriarchy is deeply rooted in the historical success of such systems, which thrived for over 200,000 years. In a matriarchal system, gender does not dictate roles; instead, the focus is on balance and the equitable distribution of power and resources. This approach is intertwined with the feminine energy that exists in all of us, regardless of gender, promoting a system that values nurturing, cooperation, and sustainable growth. Only men insecure of themselves feel uncomfortable with the idea of a Matriarch or Feminine leadership (which is genderless).
These principles are inherently aligned with nature, embodying the way natural ecosystems operate through interdependence and balance. Matriarchy, in this sense, champions inclusive leadership and collective well-being. It draws upon the nurturing aspects traditionally associated with feminine energy, aiming to create a society that is balanced and equitable. Such a system not only supports social cohesion but also ensures that growth and development are sustainable and beneficial to all members of the community.
Additionally, there is compelling data and statistics that support the notion that women are particularly well-suited for leadership roles. Women’s collaborative, compassionate, and empathetic qualities have been shown to not only enhance team dynamics but also deliver better business outcomes. This evidence further bolsters the case for a matriarchal approach, highlighting the effectiveness of leadership that is attuned to these inherently feminine traits.
“There is compelling data and statistics that support the notion that women are particularly well-suited for leadership roles.”
While we operate within a matriarchal ecosystem at Unakti, it is crucial to emphasize that men in our team are deeply valued and respected. They are integral to our community, and there is a mutual appreciation that enhances our collaborative environment. Indeed, the men on our team are very happy -though for an authentic insight of their sentiments, one would need to ask them directly! This balance and mutual respect underpin our success and contribute to a thriving workplace.
PG: Much of the cultivation is dependent on women farmers?
SG: Yes, women farmers are indeed the backbone of smallholders farming. Their invaluable knowledge and skills in farming are critical not just for sustaining their families but also for enriching the biodiversity of the region. By focusing on empowering women, we ensure food security and enhance community well-being, thereby driving progress from the ground up. This empowerment is central to our approach, recognizing the vital role these women play in both agriculture and community development.
Furthermore, we firmly believe in the enormous untapped potential of women at the grassroots in exploited, robbed and abused countries worldwide. They are our first investment priority, especially those in marginalized communities who have endured exploitation for generations. Despite these challenges, these women remain the backbone of their families and communities. By investing in and empowering them, we aim to catalyze sustainable development and regeneration in these regions.
Additionally, it is historically proven that top-down approaches to development are often inefficient and prone to failure. These methods lack holistic problem-solving capabilities and a human-centered approach to addressing planetary issues. Our focus is on fostering bottom-up initiatives that empower individuals and communities from within, ensuring that solutions are sustainable, culturally relevant, and directly address the needs and challenges faced by those on the ground. This method not only promotes long-term success but also aligns with our commitment to respecting and uplifting human dignity in every aspect of our work.
PG: You are beholden to the concept of Gurukul and Vedic lifestyle?
SG: Absolutely, the Gurukul and Vedic lifestyle are foundational to our mission, deeply influencing our practices and ethos. These ancient systems emphasize wisdom, respect for nature, and a holistic approach to living, which align perfectly with our goals of sustainability and community empowerment.
The Gurukul system, traditionally a residential schooling system that teaches not only academics but also life skills and high spiritual knowledge, inspires our approach to learning and personal development. It fosters a close-knit community environment where knowledge is passed down through experiential learning, much like the mentorship and hands-on approach we advocate.
Moreover, the principles of the Vedic lifestyle, which prioritize balance and harmony with nature, guide us in creating regenerative practices that respect and replenish our natural resources. This approach to living is more crucial today than ever as we face global environmental challenges that require not only modern technological solutions but also a return to more balanced, conscious ways of living that can be sustained across generations.
“Moreover, the principles of the Vedic lifestyle, which prioritize balance and harmony with nature, guide us in creating sustainable practices that respect and replenish our natural resources.”
In my view, without any shade of a doubt, the most elevated, evolved, and flourishing civilization that has ever walked the face of the Earth is the Vedic civilization. Their profound contributions to language, science, astrology, geometry, binary mathematics, arts, and spirituality not only unveil the intricacies of the cosmos and universal powers but also qualify them as an immensely advanced culture. Therefore, we acknowledge this culture as the most valuable asset that Bharat has to offer. We are committed to preserving and spreading this valuable heritage globally, ensuring that the wisdom of the Vedic civilization continues to enrich and inform modern society.
By integrating these ancient wisdom into our modern practices, we aim to create a life-affirming model that nurtures the environment while also fostering personal and community growth. This holistic approach ensures that our initiatives are not only effective in the short term but also contribute to a regenerative and thriving future for all.
With the school kids in Nepal, gurukul style, talking to them about climate collapse, female leadership and regenerative farming.
PG: Your skincare venture aims to be regenerative? Even the packaging will be made from mycelium?
SG: Yes, Unakti is deeply committed to regenerative practices, extending beyond the products themselves to include every aspect of our packaging. In our relentless pursuit of planetary stewardship, we’ve chosen to move away from conventional, toxic plastic packaging options. We are pioneering eco-viable solutions by utilizing bio composite-based jars, which significantly reduce the use of plastics. Additionally, we’ve adopted mycelium-based secondary packaging, a material that naturally biodegrades and ultimately nourishes the earth rather than polluting it.
Moreover, each product is wrapped in a hand-made, seeded paper sleeve. This unique packaging choice not only reduces waste but also invites our customers to actively participate in the regenerative process. By planting the seeded paper, they can watch it grow and flourish, becoming a part of the cycle of life themselves. This holistic approach underscores our commitment to regenerative design and our belief in the power of community involvement in fostering environmental well-being.
PG: How do you wish to minimize the wealth gap between your grassroots workers and those of you at the very top?
SG: To minimize the wealth gap between our grassroots workers and those at the very top, we are actively implementing policies that bridge this disparity through a more equitable salary structure and through a steward-ownership model in which all the members of the team working actively and bringing value to the project, are having access to shares. We are consciously reducing the traditionally high salaries associated with top-level management and C-suite positions, and simultaneously increasing wages at the grassroots level. We find the current wealth gap not just disproportionate but frankly unacceptable, and are committed to rectifying this through our ecosystem policies.
Our approach is grounded in the belief that dedication, commitment and contribution should drive compensation, not just titles or roles. We consider all jobs within our organization as fundamentally important, adhering to the principle that no one is above anyone else based on their role or different birth opportunities. In fact, given that clean water, food, and air are essential to survival, we believe that the roles of farmers and other foundational workers should be especially recognized, supported, and compensated appropriately.
We find the current wealth gap not just disproportionate but frankly unacceptable, and are committed to rectifying this through our ecosystem policies.
This shift towards a more equitable distribution of wealth within our company is part of our broader commitment to a just and sustainable business model, one that respects and uplifts every member of our community. By taking these active steps, we aim to not only address the financial inequities but also foster a culture of respect and mutual appreciation across all levels of our organization.
PG: How successful are your crowdfunding campaigns to raise necessary capital?
SG: Our upcoming crowdfunding campaigns are poised to play a crucial role in raising the necessary capital to advance our mission. In June, we are scheduled to initiate a pre-seed equity crowdfunding campaign, by invitation only. This selective approach is designed to build a community of aligned individuals who recognize the urgent need to move away from outdated, profit-centric, short-term investment models to a smarter system where the planet and people are priorities, and profit is merely a byproduct.
The anticipation for our model is palpable, as we reached the funding target months before launching the campaign. This reflects a strong desire for change towards nature-based, female-led business models and governance structures. The interest generated so far indicates a clear appetite for innovative, regenerative approaches that challenge traditional paradigms.
In addition to our equity campaign, we plan to launch a rewards-based crowdfunding campaign. This campaign will open up opportunities for our fans and broader supporter base, allowing them to contribute to various capacities. Participants will have the chance to pre-order our first product at a discounted rate, further engaging with our mission and becoming active members of our ecosystem.
These strategic crowdfunding efforts are aimed not just at financial backing but at cultivating a robust, engaged community. This community will be deeply involved in our ecosystem, joining us on this inspiring journey towards a higher purpose. By fostering this connection with our stakeholders, we aim to collectively pursue sustainable and equitable development, making significant strides in transforming our industry and the world.
PG: What draws you to the Himalayas?
SG: The Himalayas hold a profound allure for me, driven by a combination of their majestic natural beauty and the deeper values they embody. This region is home to some of the most forgotten and vulnerable communities, whose resilience and wisdom are a continuous source of inspiration. Their rich indigenous culture offers invaluable insights into sustainable living and a deep connection with nature, principles that are core to our mission at Unakti.
Additionally, the Himalayas are a treasure trove of high-value potent medicinal and aromatic plants, which serve as vital raw ingredients for our products. The ecosystem here is not only rich but also critical for biodiversity conservation. These plants not only contribute to the efficacy of our products but also support the local economies and traditional practices that are centered around sustainable harvesting and use of natural resources.
“The Himalayas are in urgent need of protection. These areas play a crucial role in the global climate system and water supply, underlining the need for environmental stewardship…”
Moreover, the region’s environmental significance cannot be overstated. The receding glaciers and the critical landscapes of the Himalayas are in urgent need of protection. These areas play a crucial role in the global climate system and water supply, underlining the need for environmental stewardship, a responsibility we take seriously in our operations.
Lastly, the spiritual aspect of the Himalayas, often referred to as the abode of the gods, adds a profound dimension to our work. This spiritual heritage inspires our approach, infusing our efforts with a sense of purpose and dedication to preserving and celebrating this sacred landscape.
Together, these elements draw me to the Himalayas, compelling our commitment to work in harmony with the local communities, protect and leverage the natural wealth responsibly, and uphold the cultural and spiritual legacies of this magnificent region.
PG: This is amazing stuff, Susana. All good wishes in your endeavour towards creating a just and equitable order by rediscovering the ancient best practices.
Walter Murphy began his career in the U.S. political world serving a member of Congress before transitioning to the insurance industry. He spent almost twenty years in the property & casualty market, working for ISO, AIG and QBE in a product development and compliance role. He currently is an Environment, Societal & Governance (ESG) Risk Associate at BMO Capital Markets where he helps manage ESG risk for the bank’s first line of defense (1LOD).
Praveen Gupta: You recently mentioned that the Florida state fund is now bigger than the private sector as more and more insurers refuse to provide homeowner insurance in the state?
Walter Murphy: That’s correct. Florida’s state-run insurance program, which is supposed to be an insurer of last resort, has instead become the largest insurer in the state. Since more and more private carriers have become insolvent or have withdrawn from Florida, Florida Citizens Property Insurance Corp. has become the largest property insurer in the state. Citizens has grown to provide nearly 20 percent of Florida’s property insurance. Insurance costs have risen tremendously due to the intensity and frequency of hurricanes battering the state, resulting in more carriers to exit the state rather than deal with rising costs. If the state-run program does not have enough funds to cover insurance claims because of hurricanes, then Florida taxpayers will need to cover the balance.
PG: Given the growing hurricane activity on the Florida coast, the climate risk exposure is only bound to rise?
WM: Indeed. The Atlantic hurricane season is starting earlier and ending later due to the warming of the oceans in the Atlantic Ocean as well as the Gulf of Mexico. As you know, it’s this warming of the oceans which increases the intensity of the storms and dumps more rain than ever before. Another climate risk exposure that is particular to Florida is, of course, the issue of rising seas. Not only are properties that are situated on Florida’s coasts vulnerable, but because Florida is mostly lowland and just above sea-level there is now the threat that as oceans rise seawater will now begin permeating the geology and begin mixing with and polluting the groundwater.
“A recent report by First Street Foundation, a non-profit focusing on climate risk research, found 23.9 million properties in the US are at risk from damaging winds, 4.4 million properties at risk from wildfire, and a further 12 million properties have a significant risk of flooding.”
PG: It does not stop with Florida?
WM: It’s not just in Florida. You will see this in other parts of the country as well. California (wildfires), Louisiana (hurricanes/flooding), Texas (wildfires/hurricanes) are all feeling the stress of climate change and seeing large insurance carriers either dramatically raising rates or have abandoned the marketspace entirely. And it will not be relegated to coastal states. The Midwest is seeing more intense weather events – flooding, tornados, wind, hail – which are impacting insurance prices. In fact, a recent report by First Street Foundation, a non-profit focusing on climate risk research, found 23.9 million properties in the US are at risk from damaging winds, 4.4 million properties at risk from wildfire, and a further 12 million properties have a significant risk of flooding.
PG: How much of this is about politics? One impression emerging is that the state regulators do not wish to see the insurance rates going up too fast. And that these rates are not profitable enough for the insurers to stay in the game?
WM: Politics certainly does play its part in all of this. Insurance is regulated at the state level, so there is an insurance regulator in each state whose main role is to ensure that insurance rates and premiums remain affordable and that there is adequate coverage in its state. Climate change is and will continue to make regulators’ jobs harder and harder. As more frequent and costlier weather events occur, it puts more and more strain on private carriers. And it’s not just the small and medium sized enterprises. The major carriers also are struggling and rethinking where they want to off coverage.
Take California for example. In 2023, State Farm, one of the US’ biggest insurance providers, announced it too would stop selling new home insurance policies in California due to historic increases in construction costs outpacing inflation, rapidly growing catastrophe exposure, and a challenging reinsurance market. This was due to the devastating wildfires and floods in recent years, and the ever-looming threat of a major earthquake. For years, the California Department of Insurance would not allow carriers to price climate risk into their rates. The Department finally had to acquiesce because it could not afford to lose any more carriers to flee the state and allowed insurance companies to consider climate change when setting their prices which, of course, raised homeowners rates even higher.
“U.S. insurers currently have approximately $582 billion invested in fossil fuels, including nearly $90 billion in coal alone.”
PG: But then insurers are aiding and abetting climate breakdown by investing in and insuring the fossil fuel business?
WM: Unfortunately, that is still the case. In the United States, the insurance industry continues to support existing and expanded fossil fuel projects with few restrictions in place limiting – or excluding – either. U.S. insurers continue to underwrite polluting projects while making investments in an industry whose continued expansion poses multiple serious dangers to overall economic stability and to insurance services in particular. Many U.S. insurance companies are beginning to limit the scope of coverage they will provide – or pull out of markets entirely – due to their assessments of the likelihood of coming “catastrophic risk” caused by climate change. At the same time, and despite evidence that new and expanded oil, coal, and gas development is incompatible with global climate goals and long-term economic stability, the U.S. insurance industry is continuing to support fossil fuel expansion: U.S. insurers currently have approximately $582 billion invested in fossil fuels, including nearly $90 billion in coal alone.
PG: Not only does the insurance sector need to divest from fossil fuel, but also rethink its operating model – as climate change clearly has disrupted the old way of doing business?
WM: The insurance and reinsurance sectors are facing what many other financial and industrial sectors are facing and that is the concept of “double materiality”. Double materiality considers both the effects an organization has on the climate and environment and the potential impact of these factors on its financial performance. A double materiality approach recognizes that organizations contribute to, and are affected by, climate change.
The insurance and reinsurance sectors continue to underwrite fossil fuel projects and continue to invest premiums in fossil fuel companies, thereby exacerbating the climate risks (hurricanes, flooding, wildfires, etc.) that directly affect their business. They have and continue to contribute to climate change. In double materiality, the insurance sector is also highly vulnerable to transition risk. As the world accelerates its energy transition pace to move from a fossil fuel-based economy to one run by renewable energy, all those fossil fuel assets that the insurance and reinsurance sector continue to hold and finance become highly vulnerable to becoming stranded assets. Any energy sector asset, including coal, oil, gas reserves, and fossil fuel power generators, are considered the most potential climate stranded assets.
PG: Why aren’t the likes of pollution and biodiversity loss factored as externalities when pricing risks?
WM: I think you are beginning to see more traction when it comes to the plight of biodiversity loss and what it not only means for the insurance sector but for humanity in general. Deforestation, land-use change, overfishing, pollution, climate change and the introduction of invasive alien species have resulted in biodiversity losses. One million known species could go extinct within decades. At the same time, more than half of the world’s economic output depends either highly or moderately on nature and its benefits, such as fertile soils, food supply, clean water, climate control, erosion prevention and flood control.
“The potential economic loss from the biodiversity crisis is driving a need for insurers to better assess related risks.”
The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) has really tried to bring more attention to the biodiversity crisis and how the insurance sector can price biodiversity into its risk models. The success of insurance underwriting always lies in the proper pricing of risk. The potential economic loss from the biodiversity crisis is driving a need for insurers to better assess related risks.
PG: This is an election year in the US. How would the political outcome influence the way insurers behave?
WM: Biden good, Trump bad. At the federal and international level, the presidential election will have tremendous bearing on the future of U.S. climate policy. As I indicated earlier, since insurance is regulated at the state level, it’s the down ballot elections that matter more – insurance commissioner, state legislature, governor. But I am not sure politics is really the main influencer when it comes to financial institutions and insurance companies turning away from fossil fuels.
Policy and regulations certainly do have an effect, but I think change is being driven more by economics and by choices being demanded by society. More people than ever believe that humans have affected the climate and are buying products and investing more of their money into green and sustainable products and services. Most renewable energy is now cheaper than or on par with fossil fuels and is getting cheaper every year. Economics and society are accelerating the transition. Pro-environment governments and their aggressive climate policies certainly would be welcome.
PG: ESG does not get even lip service. Any prospects for moving the needle there?
WM: Well, in America, ESG was all the rage until Republicans heard about it. Then ESG became a dirty three letter word as a symbol for being “woke” and it has become Republicans’ bogeyman. As you know, there has been a considerable amount of anti-ESG legislation that has been introduced throughout the country and some of it has been signed into law in “red states”. We’ve also seen the abuse of the term – products and financial services listed as “green” or “ESG-friendly” which has led to a considerable rise in claims of greenwashing.
Ultimately, I think the principles of ESG will continue to be touted and incorporated in financial institutions and the insurance industry simply because they are values that are proven to increase financial, societal, and environmental impact as well as ensure long-term competitiveness. In fact, I think ESG considerations are becoming more – not less – important in companies’ decision making simply because more of society is insisting upon these values and insisting that they be incorporated in companies’ that they work for and interact with in their daily lives.
PG: Many thanks Walter for these fantastic insights. It is really critical that the U.S. sets its house in order on the Climate and Bio-diversity front. I quite agree with you that your insurers cannot continue underwriting polluting projects and making investments in an industry whose continued expansion poses multiple serious dangers to overall economic stability and to insurance services in particular.
Illuminem.com
April 11, 2024
A tiger in the crosshairs image from an early campaign of ‘Project Tiger’ has stayed with me forever. The initiative ensured that the tiger stays on and continues to roar & rule our jungles.
Bittu Sahgal represents a rare breed that has relentlessly worked to ensure this success. “Project Tiger turned out to be the world’s first, to scale, rewilding project and it continues to be a metaphor for the resurrection of wild nature across the world”, he tells me in this fascinating conversation.
“Fragmentation of tiger habitats, which is ongoing in India will result in a loss of genetic diversity, not only of Panthera tigris, but of uncounted species that occupy the diverse habitats”, warns Bittu.
Moreover, the choices we now make will be very critical: “It all depends on whether India believes that its own future in an era of a galloping #climatecrisis is dependent more upon the resurrection of natural infrastructures, or on the iffy technology on which Homo sapiens seems to be placing all its bets today”.
Can we really afford to ignore his wise counsel?
The Journal, Chartered Insurance Institute
April 9, 2024
https://thejournal.cii.co.uk/2024/04/09/boeing-it-really-about-supply-chain
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7186562350299111424
My Op-ed for the Journal, Chartered Insurance Institute.
For a discerning flier – howsoever infrequent – an airline and its fleet are no longer under-the-radar. Not just the 737 MAX, anything everything to do with the top aircraft manufacturer Boeing tends to raise an alarm.
Some assorted stories flying in the popular media range anything from: Assembling of 787 Dreamliner sections that could weaken the aircraft over time; deliveries falling off the cliff; stock on its worst losing streak since 2018; the Federal Aviation Administration looking into an engine cover that came off a flight; a supplier said it tried using other household products like Vaseline and cornstarch as lubricant before it settled on using liquid Dawn soap; awards outgoing CEO Dave Calhoun a 45% pay rise; Airbus claiming it will leave Boeing in the dust this year. In operation for at least four decades, the last one-and-a-half months are proving not to be a good time for Boeing’s US-made AH-64 Apache heavy attack helicopter. (Stories with respective links in the comments).
Boeing’s acquisition of McDonnel Douglas, believe some, was the starting point of this turbulence. It compounded with the outsourcing of Dreamliner (787). The root cause, however, can be traced to its board room rather than #supplychain. A case study of one of the finest engineering companies going off the flight path. Thanks to an astute observer and commentator – Alison Taylor – that we arrive at this level of discernment.
#corporateculture #groupthink #speakup #corporatecapture #governance
Bittu Sahgal is the Editor of Sanctuary Asia magazine and heads India’s Sanctuary Nature Foundation. With near five decades of brilliant work in Nature conservation and first hand insights into Project Tiger – Bittu is the go to person for anything to do with tigers. But the tiger is just a metaphor, he reminds!
Praveen Gupta: As a keystone species, how critical is the role of tigers for the reserves they live in?
Bittu Sahgal: Tigers are apex predators that keep prey species numbers in check… which prevents herbivores from overgrazing the plants upon which countless lifeforms are dependent. Tigers also happen to be among the most charismatic and loved animals in the world and are worshipped as gods in India. This enabled conservationists to set aside vast, intact forested areas of the Indian subcontinent for the striped predators, which would almost certainly otherwise have succumbed to the axe, plough, bulldozers and dam reservoirs. As far as criticality goes, post-Independence, Project Tiger turned out to be the world’s first, to scale, rewilding project and it continues to be a metaphor for the resurrection of wild nature across the world.
“We can be very sure that fragmentation of tigers habitats, which is ongoing in India will result in a loss of genetic diversity, not only of Panthera tigris, but of uncounted species that occupy the diverse habitats”
PG: Compared to the Asiatic lion which has just one home in the wild, does their extensive spread make tigers more resilient owing to genetic diversity?
BS: Without a shadow of doubt, the Gir lion is in a genetic cul-de-sac. As little as 15,000 years ago, we had Barbary lions in North Africa, Cape lions in South Africa, and cave lions in parts of North America and Eurasia. The cave lions vanished some 14,000 years ago and the others were driven to extinction by Homo sapiens and their evolving weaponry in the last couple of centuries.
PG: How critical are wildlife corridors for the tigers?
BS: Very critical! Cornell’s College of Vetinarary Medicine quotes geneticist Uma Ramakrishnan, principal investigator of the 2021 study published in Molecular Biology and Evolution thus:
The tiger (Panthera tigris) is an iconic and charismatic endangered species that once spanned 70 degrees of latitude across Asia. It is estimated that between 2,154 and 3,159 tigers remain, which occupy less than 6% of their 1900 AD range (Goodrich et al. 2015). Despite this recent range collapse, tigers are present across 11 Asian nations, occupying diverse habitats including estuarine mangrove forests (the Sundarbans), dry deciduous forests (parts of India), tropical rainforests (Malay Peninsula), and cold, temperate forests (Russian Far East). However, the specific adaptations of the various populations to their habitats remain largely unknown.
We can be very sure that fragmentation of tigers habitats, which is ongoing in India will result in a loss of genetic diversity, not only of Panthera tigris, but of uncounted species that occupy the diverse habitats India was able to set aside in 1973, precisely to protect varied ecosystems together with their plant and animal constituents. We have examples of both Sariska and Panna tiger reserves, which witnessed the tragic local extinction of tigers. Forget genetic diversity, even though we managed to restock these tiger reserves, I wonder whether lessons for the long-term survival of Panthera tigris were actually learned.
“So tiger reserve numbers are rising as are tiger numbers themselves, yet the future of the tiger is looking bleaker by the day because of the loss of corridor connectivity”
PG: Is the tiger mobility between reserves closely tracked?
BS: Yes tiger mobility is being very closely tracked using satellite collars and thousands of camera traps, but the recommendations made by conservation biologists do not seem to carry much weight with India’s policy makers and land manager. So tiger reserve numbers are rising as are tiger numbers themselves, yet the future of the tiger is looking bleaker by the day because of the loss of corridor connectivity.
Dr. Anish Andheria of the Wildlife Conservation Trust explains this well in Sanctuary Asia:
Habitat connectivity must therefore be seen to be critical to the survival of Panthera tigris tigris through a combination of stable corridors such as riparian/riverine forests with minimal human disturbance and well-protected Territorial Forests situated within 50 km. from national parks and sanctuaries. It is equally important that the human population living close to tiger forests know how to and are willing to live in relative peace with tigers and the wild herbivores upon which the carnivores depend.
PG: Which part of our geography makes their most secure home?
BS: It’s like shifting sands. The future of the tiger depends on whose advice India’s policy makers implement.
The Sub-Himalayan Terai Ark Landscape has great resurrection potential. So do the forests of Central India comprising Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh. Without a shadow of doubt the forests of the Western Ghats could offer tigers a secure future too. It all depends on whether India believes that its own future in an era of a galloping climate crisis is dependent more upon the resurrection of natural infrastructures, or on the iffy technology on which Homo sapiens seems to be placing all its bets today.
“It all depends on whether India believes that its own future in an era of a galloping climate crisis is dependent more upon the resurrection of natural infrastructures, or on the iffy technology on which Homo sapiens seems to be placing all its bets today“
Q6. What is the biggest threat in the long list of challenges? Is it poaching, encroachment, human wildlife conflict, deforestation, dam building, loss of bio-diversity or climate change?
BS: All the above! The greatest threat is the mistaken belief that the Homo sapiens’ ‘intelligence’ can prevail over the ‘survival rules’ laid down by the biosphere… that Darwin was wrong when he placed adaptation to the biosphere higher on the survival scale than brute strength or intelligence. Lord Nicholas Stern, one of the world’s most respected economists seems to agree with Darwin and has been warning for decades that the cost of (climate) inaction will prove to be far greater in the future than the cost of action today!
PG: You have been watching tigers in the wild for close to 50 years. What is one thing that you would wish to reverse if you could go back into time?
BS: I would return to the wisdom of the ages, to resurrect India by protecting and nurturing its natural wealth, which is what gave birth to our great cultures. That is where lie the Earth’s solutions to the climate catastrophe we have brought down upon ourselves:
निर्वनो वध्यते व्याघ्रो निर्व्याघ्रं छिद्यते वनम्। तस्माद्व्याघ्रो वनं रक्षेद्वयं व्याघ्रं च पालयेत् ॥ -महाभारत – उद्योग पर्व : ५.२९.५७
Loosely translated this line from the Mahabharata suggests (metaphorically) that If the forests are destroyed the tiger will go and if the tiger is wiped out the forest will be destroyed. – Mahabharat -Udyoga Parva: 5.29.57.
PG: Grateful for these candid insights, Bittu. Your passion for Nature is truly inspiring. May you keep showing us the path in these tough times.
Illuminem
March 20, 2024
This blog-piece is my third conversation with Michele Wucker. I am really grateful that despite her demanding schedule – Michele carved out time to address my curiosity and concerns. The first two of my pieces were around her compelling bestsellers – ‘The Gray Rhino’ and ‘You Are What You Risk’.
That a seminal author and thinker of her calibre devotes increasing bandwidth to insurance, is a blessing.
The timing couldn’t have been better. She is reading the writing on the wall when #insurers seem afflicted with myopia. The#NZIA has abdicated; actuaries, accountants and auditors prefer going with the flow; rating agencies do not seem inclined to assert; the #IAIS has outsourced some critical issues to UNEPFI; #IFRS has onboard an ISSB which ignores double materiality and #SBTi must demonstrate it is indeed what the name suggests.
This list – and the ever-growing challenges – keeps expanding as time runs out. While the #grayrhinos hurtle towards us, we have chosen to be ostriches!
Author and strategist Michele Wucker coined the term “gray rhino” for obvious, probable, impactful risks, which we are surprisingly likely but not condemned to neglect. She is the author of four books including the global bestseller THE GRAY RHINO: How to Recognize and Act on the Obvious Dangers We Ignore. The metaphor has moved markets, shaped financial policies, and made headlines around the world. It helped to frame the ignored warnings ahead of the COVID-19 pandemic and inspired the lyrics of the hit pandemic pop single “Blue & Grey” by the mega-band BTS, about depression as a gray rhino. Michele’s 2019 TED Talk has attracted over two million views.
Michele is founder of the Chicago-based strategy firm Gray Rhino & Company. She has been honored as a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum and a Guggenheim Fellow. She has held leadership positions at The Chicago Council on Global Affairs; the World Policy Institute; and International Financing Review. Her writing has appeared in publications around the world including The Economist, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. A much sought-after media commentator.
Startling observations
Michele’s recent observations on insurance in The Gray Rhino Wrangler are startling. Appearing under the head of ‘Insurance and Real Estate’, these are precisely the gray rhinos hurtling towards insurers:
- Insurers have been worried for some time about whether they are sufficiently capitalized to withstand claims related to climate disasters from flood to fire and drought. The answer has become increasingly clear: they are not.
- Year after year of record insurance payouts finally prompted insurers to withdraw en masse from the most climate-vulnerable areas.
- The insurance industry is now exploring new financing models and public-private partnerships even as it continues to revisit climate risk pricing.
- The climate challenge will make it increasingly difficult to ignore gaps in risk pricing whether in insurance, real estate, financial markets, agriculture. It also will increase pressure for policy change, particularly the reduction of fossil fuel subsidies – which continue to surpass government support for renewables.
- This will have growing implications for real estate as owners are priced out of their homes by the high costs of insuring them – though for some, it appears that the ability to self-insure and shrug off the possibility of catastrophic flood and wind damage is a status symbol.
- Water scarcity is threatening cities and homes in arid areas, while an overabundance of water is flooding other communities.
- Record insurance payouts as a result of extreme weather have caused a stampede of insurance companies away from the most climate – vulnerable areas and astronomical price increases in places where they remain. The implications for real estate prices and municipal budgets (which rely heavily on property taxes) are stark.
- This will compound the financial strain on municipalities needing to build up resilience to flood or drought – and to rebuild when investments in resilience fall short.
Q&A
Praveen Gupta: The US is surely and steadily moving in the direction of ‘uninsurability’. Homes and auto are the first stop. When could it reach the Oil and Gas segment?
Michele Wucker: The past year’s mounting losses in places vulnerable to hurricanes and wildfires made it clear to insurers that property coverage in those areas was no longer a good risk-reward proposition.
Insurers face bigger underwriting and investment choices in oil and gas. Do they want to keep insuring fossil fuel activities that are costing them more and more in extreme weather-related claims and lost business where it has become impossible to keep insuring clients? Activist shareholders and plaintiffs in lawsuits by more than 20 US cities, states, and non-profits are trying to convince them that the answer is no.
Some insurers have taken steps to cut back on their underwriting of oil and gas. It’s still nothing near as many companies nor as bold as what climate activists want to see. And it lags activists’ success in pushing insurance companies to exit coal. But there is increasing momentum.
Oil and gas insurers will see more and more shareholder proxy voting campaigns asking insurers to report how specifically they plan to support greenhouse gas reductions. Several recent activist campaigns appear to be having a small amount of impact even though they got minority support in the 30 percent range and were non-binding anyway.
A growing number of states and cities – including Chicago, where I live – are suing fossil fuel companies because of their climate impact. If courts start ruling for the plaintiffs, that could make a difference in insurability.
PG: As this unfolds in the US, developing countries are trying to increase their insurance penetration?
MW: Insurance regulators and companies in the US market are looking closely at protection gaps related to extreme weather. Most likely we will see gaps increasing in some areas as insurers withdraw or raise prices so high that property owners opt to “self-insure.” But gaps may narrow elsewhere as property owners become more concerned with protecting themselves.
“Increasing insurance penetration in developing countries likely will require a blended finance approach”
The dynamic in developing countries is so different from developed countries that it’s practically an apples-versus-oranges scenario. First, the protection gaps are much wider and penetration rates are much lower. Many of the most climate vulnerable areas are also the least likely to be insured and the least likely to be able to afford insurance.
Increasing insurance penetration in developing countries likely will require a blended finance approach; this scenario could combine development bank financing for resilience and adaptation with some carefully targeted private sector policies in areas with more awareness of and ability to afford insurance. Increasing interest in catastrophe bonds and global risk pooling may play a part as well. And, more controversially, climate resilience also may require moving people from climate-vulnerable areas to higher ground or less water-stressed areas.
PG: What numbs humans to recklessly ignore climate risk?
MW: Humans’ reckless ignorance of climate risk is the consequence of a combination of influences. First is what some social scientists call “solution aversion” which is a tendency to deny the seriousness of problems when we don’t like the solution. This is quite prevalent in part because most humans don’t like change of any kind, so solution aversion comes into play more than we think.
Manufactured denial also comes into play: people who don’t like solutions to climate change because they are making money from dirty energy know that they can exploit human nature.
“I think it’s important to call out as false – that climate change is “slow moving” and something that will happen in the future”
The media also comes into play. Here I hesitate to repeat the mistaken impression they disseminate, lest I reinforce it, but I think it’s important to call out as false – that climate change is “slow moving” and something that will happen in the future.
It’s here now: extreme weather, rising seas and inland water levels, droughts, wildfires. Finally, a sense of agency is important, but climate change feels so big that many people feel powerless, even though we have more power than we think.
PG: Insurers understand risk. Yet they – the large American ones in particular – continue to invest in and insure the very reasons responsible for the Climate breakdown?
MW: It’s very much in insurers’ interest to help solve the climate crisis, and you’re right – it’s a big problem that many insurers continue to invest in and insure the fossil fuel industry. If you insure coastal real estate, businesses and individuals who are prone to flood or fire damage, or any other entities vulnerable to climate change-induced extreme weather, why would you want to contribute to the very influences that put your insured clients – and in turn, yourself – in harm’s way? That question is especially apt when it’s clear that fossil fuels are at a turning point when both investors and policy makers are going to be making big changes.
There has been rising concern by financial regulators and by insurers themselves over whether the industry has enough capitalization to withstand expected losses caused by climate change, and it’s time to stop hand-wringing and take serious action. The insurance industry also is well positioned to push for meaningful changes by insured entities. Just like many auto insurers reduce your premiums for avoiding accidents, driving fewer miles, and allowing apps to monitor (and hopefully improve) your driving habits, there are so many ways that insurers could nudge clients to reduce their carbon impact.
PG: Many thanks, Michele for the eye-opening insights from time to time. How I wish the insurance industry wakes up to your warnings.
Rose Hall Martyr’s Memorial at Canje, Berbice: Built by the Government of Guyana and unveiled on March 13, 2013, by President Donald Ramotar.
A long time ago in far away Berbice, British Guiana (modern day Guyana) – some oppressed indentured workers of Indian origin put up a resistance against unjust colonial masters. One hundred and eleven years ago it was – on March 13th 1913 to be precise – this resistance on Rose Hall Plantation ended up in a bloody carnage.
“British colonial police killed fifteen, including a woman they shot in the stomach, and injured another thirty-nine, seriously enough to warrant amputations. It was perhaps the deadliest indenture-era suppression of unrest in the Caribbean”. I quote Gaiutra Bahadur – author of Coolie Woman: The Odyssey of Indenture – a Guyanese-American journalist who has devoted much of her career to telling the stories of immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers.
“Never in the history of this South American colony has so much blood shed occurred, and at such a petty excitement to the police”
Dr. R.N Sharma in The Modern Review, Calcutta
“It wasn’t just that the indentured worked more hours than were legal, without being paid the legal minimum. The wrongs exposed by the immigrants weren’t merely economic. There had also been insults to their honour”, explains the author to Guyanese Online.
“The façade of justice was general. The incestuous social life of planters, magistrates and immigration agents utterly undermined any safeguards built into indenture, allowing for widespread abuse of “coolies” by their masters”.
Shades of Brigadier General R.E.H Dyer
“The colony’s police chief, Colonel G.C. de Rinzy, paraded through with a phalanx of men and a Maxim gun. That weapon of war had been credited with swiftly subduing large swathes of Africa for colonial rule in the 1890s, as much because of the panic inspired by its fearsome appearance in battle as the bullets it discharged rapid-fire”.
“Imagine him with his maxim gun and all his men fully armed, and then imagine the poor, thin-faced, half-starving coolies, armless except for a few sticks and their instruments of agriculture, standing on the opposite side”
Dr. R.N. Sharma in The Modern Review, Calcutta
“Six months after it, in the Viceroy’s Legislative Council in Delhi, a pioneer in India’s nationalist movement posed a question on the record about the shooting…” writes Ms. Bahadur. “And he called for compensation to the wounded and the families of the dead – a call that ultimately went nowhere…”
Also present at the site was the Ms. Bahadur’s great grandmother who came to British Guiana as an indentured labour.
“A month and six years later – on April the 13th 1919, about twenty five thousand unarmed Indians had gathered in Jallianwalla Bagh in Amritsar to mark a protest against the recently imposed Rowlatt Act. Also present were several children – to rest, relax and catchup with friends.
A little after five in the evening, a detachment of soldiers, led by Brigadier General R.E.H. Dyer, entered the Bagh. Without warning the crowd to disperse, Dyer ordered his troops to open fire. Atleast 1,650 rounds were fired. Several hundred died and several hundred more were injured. The massacre was universally condemned by all Indians and even shocked many Britons, who thought it one of the worst outrages in all of British history”. A gripping narrative by Navtej Sarna – in his book – Crimson Spring is unmissable.
“I wonder if the thoughtful people of India will realise the necessity of protesting strongly against the present system of indentured emigration”
Dr. R.N. Sharma in The Modern Review, Calcutta
Colonial compulsions
As a predecessor of fossil fuel, sugar was a compelling driver of colonialism. Abolition of slavery would have scuttled colonial continuity. Indentured was invented as a necessary evil. The theatre thus significantly shifted from Africa to Asia. The biggest brunt was borne by the then Indian empire.
The rebellion of 1857 wasn’t the first ‘mutiny’ as we tend to be fed. Thanks to Bankim Chandra Chatterjee’s Anand Math, the Sannyasi rebellion remains alive in our collective imagination.
That in a distant West Indies, far away from the motherland, an exploited workforce refused to be cowed down by the coloniser. The ‘master’ chose to brutalise. The Rose Hall playbook had to replay. Rather than be grateful for the blood and sweat of the labour and the soldier, Jallianwalla Bagh was its most unfortunate magnification.
P.S. Dr. Ram Narayan Sharma was a medical practitioner at Berbice, British Guiana (BG). He was reportedly persuaded by Bhai Parmanand and other revolutionaries to locate there and look after the indentured cause. Dr. Sharma was at the location during this event.
Arrived (BG) in 1911. He passed away mysteriously, at a young age, in 1920. His activities and movements were under close and constant surveillance of British intelligence.
March 6th, 2024
Illuminem.com
Also published on http://www.thediversityblog.com
#IndigenousPeoples deserve special attention after centuries of abuse. On the eve of #IWD, here are some powerful and first hand insights from Amelia Marchand.
The dotted line from #colonialism to #climatebreakdown traverses through #Indigenous terrain. While America does not monopolize exploitation, very few can match its scale of brutality.
“I have heard again and again that climate change is a ‘threat multiplier’, says Amelia. “That means that the living conditions and quality of life from the richest to the poorest will be vulnerable to climate impacts, but that those climate impacts will be exacerbated – felt most extremely – by those on the margins of power, equality, and access to resources.”
Well known author and climate champion Amitav Ghosh provides a context in an interview with the Guardian: “Because for two centuries, European colonists tore across the world, viewing nature and land as something inert to be conquered and consumed without limits and the indigenous people as savages whose knowledge of nature was worthless and who needed to be erased. It was this settler colonial worldview – of just accumulate, accumulate, accumulate, consume, consume, consume – that has got us where we are now.”
“Unfortunately, the #patriarchal systems of many colonial and capitalistic governments, as experienced in the United States where #class and #racial #inequalities are still perpetuated, are structured in favor of benefiting men and boys. Some people may believe this subject is uncomfortable or unrelated to #climate and the #environment. But that belief is precisely why the topic must be discussed”, explains Amelia in this very candid conversation.
#diversity #inclusion #dei
March 7, 2024
The Journal, Chartered Insurance Institute
https://thejournal.cii.co.uk/2024/03/07/health-ethical-pushback
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7173868669163257856
When possibilities are humongous – there is bound to be an intense interplay of multiple currents. The Pharma industry is just that today. I highlight some unintended consequences insurers encountered in the Purdue Pharma L.P. – McKinsey & Company tango.
From painkillers – here are some interesting trends in yet another hot segment (ongoing coverage by Quartz Daily):
Surging demand for weight loss medications have created a drug duopoly. Novo Nordisk & Eli Lilly and Company currently dominate the market. This has transformed the two pharmaceutical developers into some of world’s most valuable companies – and they could become the first $1 trillion pharma firms.
Novo Nordisk’s weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy are popular, and powerful. So popular that they’re raising the GDP of the company’s native Denmark.
So popular that food company executives are fearfully calling Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen to ask for advice because patients don’t want to eat.
Oprah Winfrey recently announced that she’s leaving the board of WW International (formerly known as WeightWatchers), which she’s served on since 2015 as one of the company’s largest shareholders.
Btw she revealed last year that she takes a weight loss drug. She didn’t specify which one! WW’s share price responded by dropping nearly 20%.
From making a difference in weightloss and type2diabetes, could they tamp down inflammation, too? Needs to be seen.
Other players want a slice of the success as well. Since the possibilities are compelling, some may resort to say ‘turbo-charging’ their sales.
Covid misadventures seem to be almost forgotten. Obesity and diabetes are here to stay. So are painkillers. And grow!
In such exciting times, insurers need to watch that insurance does not end up as a license to stray outside the ethical terrain.
The Diversity Blog 